Confusing German Eszett (ẞ; ß) with Greek beta (β) in Biomedical Writing

Abstract

In scientific writing, there is a need to be as precise as possible. Non-English letters, such as from the Greek alphabet, are frequently used in biomedical research while mathematics uses an even wider range of symbols. In this note, the importance of not confusing the German special character, the Eszett (uppercase ẞ; lowercase ß), with the lowercase Greek beta (β), is emphasized. Three examples are provided within the wider context of science’s erroneous literature and the postpublication peer review movement. Science writing occasionally requires the use of non-English letters and special characters that can easily be confused, or mistaken. Academics from culturally diverse backgrounds may also have unique letters specific to their language’s alphabet. Ideally, in science writing, there is a desire to represent both accurately. In the German alphabet, there is a unique special character, the Eszett (uppercase ẞ; lowercase ß) that has specific orthographic uses. Except for German names (e.g., scientists or cities/locations in Germany) or other very specific uses exclusive to the German language, it is rare, if not altogether out of place, to use ẞ/ß in science writing. In contrast, in Greek, lowercase beta (β), the second letter of the Greek alphabet, is commonly used in biomedical research, as are other Greek letters, e.g., names of compounds (β-carotene) or proteins (amyloid-beta, Aβ), in mathematics, or in statistics. However, the wrong letter might be used, i.e., instead of the Greek β, the German ß might be inserted. When the terms “beta” (or “β”) are searched on PubMed, […]

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